Walmart to stop Selling VCR's in 2006

[Timmychuck]

They said on the news last night, that Wally-Mart was going to stop selling VCR, was not TRUE.
Wally-Mart Is sill going to sell VCR has long people still want them.

[Dr_Layne]

I have both new and old technology. Since I archive rare recordings both audio and video, I need to be able to play back just about all formats. Right now I have 8 track in stereo and quad, reel to reel, cassette, cd, dvd, laserdisc, svhs, betamax, umatic, betacam SP, DAT, and a PCM outboard unit for recording digital audio using a VCR and of course a turntable.

Steve

[Nilfennasion]

No wonder the BBC keeps demanding outrageous fees from everyone who owns a TV, regardless of whether they watch or not. But then, DW was often made on a budget of six pennies per episode.

Recently, the ABC here has been broadcasting repeats of DW serials that are older than I am. Some of them from the 1960s, in fact. When I was a wee lad, they usually showed a new serial then an old one, and so forth. I don't know what sort of deal the ABC had with the BBC, but obviously the actors union thing must not have applied.

What I meant was that rather than fearing isolating an audience that was using existing technology, the fact that new technology was expensive kept it out of most homes. At least, that was my experience during the Commodore 64 days. Nowadays, people seem to be holding onto things as hard as they can, desperate to stand in the way of progress. This being the same audience that was dazzled by the Star Trek OS, and all.

The BBC is also a publically-funded utility, and telecine machines have never been cheap. It was more probable that the BBC simply could not afford to release VHS until then.

Actually, I was referring to newly-created audio adventures like The Ghosts Of N-Space, or the Big Finish adventures. But the release of missing episodes as soundtrack CDs is also good.

Of course, the decision to shoot the new DW in HD was probably the smartest move the BBC ever made. Now if they could just figure out keeping the cast stable...

[oldfart13]

"Recently, the ABC here has been broadcasting repeats of DW serials that are older than I am. Some of them from the 1960s"

I don't really need any of these as I recorded them all on my (shudders to you) VHS equipment in the 1980s. Just being able to put my hands on "The War Games", "The Romans", "The Space Museum", etc. at a moments notice is VERY gratifying. Then again, when the show was in it's heyday in the USA, there were so many of the extant stars doing interviews, PBS donation drives, etc. and having all that footage that is never going to make it to DVD is also gratifying as is all the convention footage I shot between 1987 (Worldcon Brighton England) and 2000 (Worldcon Chicago USA) that would also be lost if I had never shot it in the first place. VHS has been very good to me over the years. Without it, no anime. The fans at the time that were trading with Japanese people were very limited in that late 70s period. If VHS/Beta had not existed then there would never have developed an available fan base that the producers could then exploit. Bully to all those that pooh-pooh old equipment. I still maintain my VHS equipment as my Chinese and Vietnamese friends have me record exclusively to that format. Many older people seem confused or uncaring of DVD but VHS they "get" easily. DVD isn't really as robust as some would have you believe. The rental outfits have been upset for years about replacements for scratched discs. For VHS it was an easy splice and put it back on the shelf. Most people would tolerate the momentary glitch. DVD is easy to scratch/destroy but hard to replace. You can't just make a copy and put it on the shelf in the rental biz...

[Cole]

Recently, the ABC here has been broadcasting repeats of DW serials that are older than I am. Some of them from the 1960s, in fact. When I was a wee lad, they usually showed a new serial then an old one, and so forth. I don't know what sort of deal the ABC had with the BBC, but obviously the actors union thing must not have applied.

Out of date repeats only applies to the BBC i.e. agreements to show old programmes on the BBC itself. An odd situation would occur. It would cost the BBC nearly as much as a programme cost to produce if shown as an out of date repeat and permission from actors or actors' estates (I can only think of an ITV example, but a few years back, ITV wanted to re-show The Professionals, but it was apparently blocked because Martin Shaw wasn't proud of the fact that he made that series).

However, if the BBC bought in, say, the original Star Trek now all it would have paid for is the rights to show it again. If ABC buys the rights to show Doctor Who, it buys the rights but doesn't have to have the negotiations.

However, I do beleive that some of the issues concerned are out of date as the Digital station BBC4 has been showing a few vintage dramas of late.

What I meant was that rather than fearing isolating an audience that was using existing technology, the fact that new technology was expensive kept it out of most homes. At least, that was my experience during the Commodore 64 days. Nowadays, people seem to be holding onto things as hard as they can, desperate to stand in the way of progress. This being the same audience that was dazzled by the Star Trek OS, and all.

Right, I understand now... Yes, I remember in the early 80s, the awe someone used to get if they 'had a video". My first VCR was about £350 and that was alot of money for me back then! Twenty years later however, I think that there is a consumer nervousness. There have been a couple of format failures (8mm video, mini-disc) and I believe that many are holding onto thier existing equipment until the new formats have become established. DVD recorders are now established, but in the Uk (as I said in my first post on this forum) is having its Analouge TV signals turned off in about seven years time. There is only one DVD recorder with a Digital reciever built in!

Actually, I was referring to newly-created audio adventures like The Ghosts Of N-Space, or the Big Finish adventures. But the release of missing episodes as soundtrack CDs is also good.

Ah, of course, I forgot about them. Hasn't Colin Baker come to his own on those.

Now if they could just figure out keeping the cast stable...

Well, we have had the regeneration! Have to wait until Christmas Eve now for the next episode.

Apparently it was all planned from the very beginning that CE would leave after the first series. It was hoped that the regeneration at the end of the series was to be kept a secret and be a complete surprise. What a pity that this couldn't have happened and that someone from the BBC press office blew the secret!

Bully to all those that pooh-pooh old equipment.

Many old TV programmes that I was too young to see or not yet born, I was able to catch up with on VHS during the 80s early 90s - Doctor Who, Blake's 7 (well, wasn't too young but only about fifteen when it was first on), Quatemass, Doomwatch, Shoestring, Adam Adamant, UFO etc.

BUT DVD now is doing the same thing: Moonbase 5, Ghost Stories for Christmas, Children of the Stones, Quatermass (again), Saphire and Steel, The Omega Factor, Dominic Hyde...

Embrace the new, but don't rubbish the old.

[lacywest]

How long will vcrs be around ??

Well ... in the world we live in ... we are not really concerned.

But ... do you realize how many institutions like for example ... the place I work at ... didn't have a DVD player until I started working there.

They use the VCR to conduct sessions because there lesson plans are on VHS tapes.

I bought them a Panasonic HI-FI vcr ... [Panasonic is one of few vcrs that still allow recording in LP mode (4 HRs). I have 3 of them at home and none of them are eating tapes.

Well a few months ago ... I come in and find it's been replaced with some dumb ass mono vcr ... reason being it was eating tapes.

The director at my place of work told me the tapes they use for conducting lessons ... cost a lot of money and they can't afford to replace them if the vcr machine starts eating tapes.

I told him if they own the tape they have the right to make a back up of it on a DVD ... he told me ... they don't own the lesson tapes. HUH ??

Since I bought the Panasonic VCR ... I wanted it back ... the remote would have come in handy for my other Panasonic VCRs at my home.

What they did with it ... I dont know ..... it's gone.

They've got the Sanyo DVD player plugged into this mono vcr audio/video inputs ... I need to see if the Sanyo is putting out a mono signal ... or the guys are only hearing half of the audio.

My point is tho ... there are a lot of places still using VCRs.

Us folks don't care but other places are not ready to replace their VCRs yet if they want continue to conduct sessions with their library of VHS tapes.

[Nilfennasion]

First of all, Bully to the rental industry. If they had their way, we'd still all be watching VHS, blissfully ignorant that we're missing out on half the picture. They are little more than a parasite on the film industry that has outlived its usefulness, anyway.

And really, when a format that can be kept archival and left for 100+ years without decay or erosion suddenly shows up with massive scratches, the smart money is on people going out of their way to mishandle them.

Anyway, yes that is an odd situation. I never realised the actors had that much power at the BBC. No wonder working there is such a popular job with British actors.

The ABC's programming often consists of material borrowed, bought, or licensed from the BBC. As does most of what they have released on DVD to date. I would be surprised if the ABC generated any content of its own.

I think the essential problem with these failed formats is reflected in the reason for DVD's success. Rather than dumping a load of it on the market and expecting people to buy it, the people behind DVD slowly trickled it into the market, complete with the occasional helpful advice as to what this new format was all about. The Roadshow DVD trailer (Roadshow distribute a lot of ABC/BBC material, too) is one of the best comparisons between VHS and DVD ever made. It plays back a shot in Sword Fish at VHS resolution, pan and scan. Then you hear the words Replay... on DVD. Suddenly, the picture expands to 2.35:1, 576-line, and the audio literally punches you in the face. Its like watching the electronic format equivalent of Triumph Des Willens. But anyway, the point is that the DVD Consortium made an effort to make it clear to the public that they stand to benefit from mass adoption. Which is exactly what nobody has done with 8mm video or MiniDisc (I own a MiniDisc player, and compared to CD... well, there is no comparison).

I don't think a DVD recorder with a digital tuner even exists in this area.

I honestly felt that Colin Baker got a raw deal on Doctor Who. By that time, John Nathan-Turner's egomania had kicked into full volume, and quality control was right out the window. The fact that the show was placed "on hiatus" for a whole year during Colin's term was a crippling blow to his career as the Doctor. Not that the scripts he was given were much better, but then, Sylvester McCoy also had to contend with both lousy scripts and a very lousy companion character in the beginning. Once Sophie Aldred was brought in, though, it was like "yes! the Doctor is back!".

Honestly, I think Eccleston is making a bit of a mistake leaving so soon. His film career has been a real non-starter. The only decent film I ever saw him in was Shallow Grave, and if you ever need an example of why Ewan McGregor is now impossible to forget even if you try while Eccleston's highlight has been a cameo appearance in Gone In 60 Seconds, that's a good film to see. So I don't think Eccleston's statement about not wanting to be typecast makes the slightest bit of sense. Not that he looks anything like the Doctor to my eye, anyway. He looks more like a street punk in the publicity stills I have seen.

There are also many television series I would not have seen if not for repeats. But there's even more I would not have bothered with if not for DVD-Video (Dark Angel) being my favourite example. The thing is though, just because a technology is all that is available at the time does not make it good. There is not a technical expert in the world that will assert VHS to be a better format than Betamax. In fact, many professionals still use Beta for recording the news. The simple fact is that marketeering won out over common sense there.

It is therefore quite justified, in my opinion, to rubbish VHS. Old it may be, but that doesn't excuse it from the fact that true black was not possible on it due to low-level noise, or that almost every recorder available with it did so in composite.

[Cole]

It is therefore quite justified, in my opinion, to rubbish VHS. Old it may be, but that doesn't excuse it from the fact that true black was not possible on it due to low-level noise, or that almost every recorder available with it did so in composite.

Hmmm, that comment got me thinking; maybe there is a certain part of nostalgia involved in my opinion.

But it may mainly be on the nature of the equipment I had back then. I used to watch my videos on a 14" 1986 Sony Trinitron (still going strong). Then I stepped up to a 25" 1993 Trinitron. The picture quality on those with the VHS machines over the years - Fisher (top loader), Amstrad, Panasonic seemed to be okay to me at the time.

I now have a 32" Loewe Aventos and a newer Panasonic - I will admit that the picture is awful with VHS playback, i.e. better equipment shows up more problems. However, at the same time I am also used to much better now. If I watch broadcast television for example, it is always through the digital receiver now.

Where I live, the television reception (analogue) is pretty poor, so maybe I couldn't tell the difference between normal TV and VHS

...

Christopher Eccleston's finest performance was in a BBC Drama from 1995 called Our Friends in the North. He does tend to be more of a theatre actor. I do agree with the image BTW, not very Docorish at all and CE's performance was a bit dour and to an extent his Doctor was a bit of a bully.

David Tennant's brief appearance after the regeneration looks as if the character of the Doctor will be back on track, as David is a huge Doctor Who fan himself, but we have yet to see what the image is like.

[Nilfennasion]

Indeed, I would have a lot more nostalgia regarding VHS if I did not spend one half of my time in recent years getting hit in the face with all the problems that magically disappear on DVD, and the other half flabbergasted at peoples' ignorance about the two. The saying about how you can lead a horse to water but you cannot make it drink, well, there should be a third clause about how you cannot explain to an idiot about why drinking is a good thing.

I think the biggest piece of equipment I ever watched VHS on was 68cm from corner to corner. I never understood why Australia insisted on using corner to corner measurements since the units are all the same shape. Anyway, point is that it is hard to see the difference when you only see one or the other, but when you see both...

I think the best example I can think of would be Total Recall. On VHS, I had never seen a version where the colours remained within their natural borders, especially during any sequence that took place on "Mars". Mind you, most of the VCRs in question were first or second generation, but still... first or second generation DVD players have no trouble with this film on DVD.

The inability to identify as the Doctor, in my opinion, is what counted most against Doctors five and six. They both had a producer who had very non-standard ideas about what the show should be. Which is okay if you can make them work, but during six's run in particular, serials where it did work were much less frequent than ones where it didn't. Seven had the same problem with some serials (Paradise Towers, I think, was just awful in some moments), but he at least got the essence of the character. And he was willing to suggest a new course of action for the series itself, something that was long overdue. Sylvester knew the strengths of the show better than John did, from what I have heard in the commentary he did for Remembrance Of The Daleks.

I think the more important factor will be what the stories are like. Now that the technology available to the series has improved out of sight, it might be time to do some of the more outrageous things that the show would have done if the BBC were willing to spend more than sixpence an episode.

[handyguy]

I think they are just going to have Dual Deck units. The price isn't much higher.